


A Dying Dream

by PitchBlackWings



Series: The Living Trilogy [2]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: A Continuation Of "A Living Nightmare", Angst, BITTIES, Bitty Shops, But I Could Also Just Be Lazy, Cameos, Cooking, Daddy Issues, Family Problems, Fett is a good Brother, Fluff, Guilt, Honestly I Could Make Believable Sciencey Logic For This, How Does One Even Begin The Complicated Process Known As Tagging, Infrequent Updates, Intentional neglect to protect people is not a good idea guys, It's Been Almost A Year And I'm Still Hopeless At It, Long Chapters it is!, M/M, Minor Character Death, Nightmare Stop Forgetting You Have Kids, Not Beta Read, Or maybe just one bitty, Panic Attacks, Phycological Torture/Damage, Poor Killer™, Protective Nightmare, Regret, Shopping, So It's A Mixture Of Both, Soul Magic, Suicidal Thoughts, Violence, i will add tags as we go along, mind-control, poor Nightmare, poor error
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-25
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:40:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24860959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PitchBlackWings/pseuds/PitchBlackWings
Summary: Ink has been slain, and Nightmare has been brought back to something like his old self. The Star Sanses are telling the truth about the Multiverse to everyone, and Dream is recovering quickly. Peace looks to be returning to the AUs at long last.But all is not as it seems.A hidden enemy, a damaged friend, and dark forces beyond anything seen before lurk just out of sight... and above all, an ominous, ticking clock that will slowly but surely run out of time...Welcome to a Dying Dream.
Relationships: Error/Nightmare, Errormare
Series: The Living Trilogy [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1629637
Comments: 245
Kudos: 155





	1. New Beginnings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang begins to fall into a new routine, unusual as it might be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly just an excuse to describe the Doodle Sphere's base, give an overview of how much everything has changed, and have Killer doing more chores.
> 
> IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE FIRST BOOK, DO THAT FIRST! OTHERWISE IT'S JUST GOING TO BE A BUNCH OF CUTE/ANGSTY/VIOLENT STUFF YOU WILL HAVE NO REFERENCE FOR!!
> 
> https:/archiveofourown.org/works/1980724/chapters/47302489
> 
> If you are here from A Living Nightmare... welcome back and welcome aboard the ride! Enjoy~

Killer sighed, wiping his face with his sleeve. He was elbows-deep in suds and dirty dishes that nobody else would wash, and the dishwasher was broken, so it all had to be done by hand.

Eight people's worth of dirty dishes.

Honestly. How was this possible? There was no WAY that the Doodle Sphere had this many spoons. There were more spoons than forks and knives COMBINED.

The water running out of the faucet splashed off of the metal spoon and into Killer's face for the umpteenth time.

Seriously. Ink managed to make an EPIC base in the Doodle Sphere.... and then ruin it with the stupidest stuff. Which... made sense, once Killer thought about it.

The art room was covered in paint and ink, the wallpaper peeling with the weight of the still-drying layers of oil paints. The kitchen was covered in tomato sauce.

Just. Tomato sauce. EVERYWHERE. Killer was still cleaning it off of the ceiling.

The bedrooms hadn't been cleaned in ages, with Dream's room and Ink's old room being the sole exceptions. The others had layers of cobwebs so thick you could barely see the corners of the room.

The entire gang had to hurry and clean up the cobwebs- both so that Nightmare could have a bed to rest on, and so that Fresh wouldn't freak out. The colorful skeleton was not fond of arachnids in any shape or size.

And the basement.....

Killer shuddered, shaking his head. THAT had been a nightmare.

The attic, however, was stuffed to the brim with paint and wallpapers and furniture and blankets of all shapes and sizes and colors. The gang (read: Error) was completely redesigning the Doodle Sphere. If they had to stay here for any period of time, it would NOT be in rooms with puke green ceilings and blinding purple walls.

There were so very many guest rooms... enough so that the entire gang could have each had their own room, one per person, all to themselves... and STILL invite people to stay overnight.  
However, with their leader injured and their second-in-command still recovering, the gang felt it safer to simply stay in the largest room, everyone together for added safety. Nightmare, of course, had his own room, but nobody was stupid enough to try anything near there. Even injured, Nightmare could and would still kick your butt if necessary.

Speaking of their leaders....

Error was recovering nicely, with occasional bursts of healing magic. He had about a week or so to go before he would be entirely without pain, but his body was working and operational... however, EVERYONE told Error not to push his luck. So, the Destroyer spent most of the day lying down in one of his hammocks, so he wouldn't agravate his wounds.

The worst of it was his ribs and eyesocket. The bones in his ribcage would heal… but there was an entire chip missing from his right eye. Error would probably need different glasses, or maybe just a monocle.

Killer snickered at the thought of Error in a monocle. Maybe he could make him a top hat to go with it. The perfect glitchy gentleman~

Dream had sustained injuries as well, and they were.... much more servere, to say the least.

The worst of it was his Soul and ribcage, which was almost entirely shattered. It would heal, but that was only because of his remarkable self-heling ability as the Guardian of Positivity. Anyone else would already be dead. As it was, Dream just needed a brace for his chest to make sure the bone stayed firmly in place during the healing process.

Nightmare's injuries were the hardest to judge.

One, because Nightmare was completely COVERED in sticky corruption. Bones were just a support system for his body; the true "essense" of the dark Guardian was found in his black corruption and in his Soul. So, determining his health was a tricky buisness. It wasn't like there was a way to easily tell how healthy someone was based on the cogalency of their body, after all...

Second, because of the potion that had been used on Nightmare. Nobody had any idea exactly what it did, but it had certainly slowed down Nightmare's recovery. It was possible that some of the potion still lingered in Nightmare's Soul, weakened by the antidote but still trying to do damage. Their father was certainly emotionally compromised, but the Doctortale!Sans was undecided if the potion might be causing that as well.

At this point, it was just a very awkward and stressful waiting game.

The gang had their fair share of injuries as well- but nothing more serious than a fractured bone, miraculously. With a bit of healing gel and magic, everyone in the gang had healed up pretty well, thank the stars.

Nobody knew what happened to the wolves Nightmare had used to attack them with. They had vanished as soon as Nightmare had fainted on the battlefield, and nobody wanted to bring it up to the tentacled skeleton himself just yet. It might trigger him, and the poor father already blamed himself for everything that happened, even though it was entirely Ink's fault.

Killer snarled. If Ink was still alive, he would have killed the God of Creativity himself by now. However, the stupid paint splotch had ben tossed into the Void, and Killer consoled himself with the thought that there was no death worse than that. No amount of torture Killer could have dished out would ever come close to the Void.

So now they just... waited.

The Doodle Sphere was safer than the base, because the evil Nightmare had booby trapped it after the gang had fled from his control. Blue had readily let them stay, and Dream had agreed, stating that the gigantic house would be lonely with just the two Star Sanses left.

Blue had only told Stretch the very, very minimum of truth to get his older brother off of his back. The Star Sanses were short a pair of helping hands, and they needed Blue to help out some friends. Stretch wasn't happy about it, but he wouldn't surprise them and start destroying stuff and demand his brother back, so that was good enough.

The Doodle Sphere had a variety of chores that needed to be done while the gang stayed there, however- lots of vacuuming and sweeping and mopping and various other mundane cleaning tasks, especially with eight skeletons living there and three of them still badly injured.

They also needed to move their stuff out of the Anti-Void... ugh, there was so much to do...

"Hey, Kills. Found another batch of about twenty something spoons under the couch cushions." Dust walked into the kitchen, startling Killer out of his thoughts with arms full of clinking, dusty, metal utensils.

"Not more spons!" Killer groaned, staring in disbelief. How was this possible?

Dust nodded. "And, uh, Cross found maybe fifty more under Ink's mattress, so…"

"WHY?!?!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Killer washing spoons is a bit of a self-insert because I can never wash spoons without getting water EVERYWHERE
> 
> OK YALL I NEED A BIT OF HELP HERE.
> 
> Should I do SHORTER but more FREQUENT chapters, or LONGER and LESS FREQUENT chapters? Tell me in the comments!
> 
> Speaking of comments... leave a kudos or even a comment if you liked the chapter! It honestly makes my day ^^
> 
> I hope you enjoyed! :3


	2. A Bitty In Need

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmare is feeling better and just wants some time alone. On his visit to another AU, however, he finds someone who needs help...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know nothing about bitties, all of this or most of it is pure headcanon.
> 
> THE UNANIMOUS VERDICT (except for one angel who said whatever I want to do would be best) FOR THE CHAPTER LENGTHS WAS LONG AND SLOW!! I prefer to write that way for a lot of stories, so I'm happy with the results!
> 
> TW for violence and slightly disturbing content, in case you didn't look at the tags.

Nightmare walked through the alleyways of this AU, his pace slightly more labored than usual. His STATS, while finally stable, were much lower than usual.  
Of course, he was still much more powerful than any mere mortal. He was just much weaker than normal.

Killer and the others would throw a fit if they knew he was gone, and they'd probably try to lecture him when he got back, but at this point, Nightmare could care less.

Don't misunderstand him, Nightmare LOVED his family greatly, and very much appreciated the care they gave him. But sometimes, it was just... too much.

Nightmare was used to taking care of his boys, not the other way around. And after everything he did to them, even if he wasn't truly in control… he just didn't deserve all of this forgiveness. Not yet, when he couldn't do anything to repay them for it. Not after everything he did. Maybe one day he would… but not today.

And besides, they really were babying him. He was the Guardian of Negativity! A walk outside of the house should have been easy! But everyone refused, telling him to fully recover.

When he said 'everyone', though, he really meant Killer. Nightmare had refused anyone else who asked to visit, not wanting any more confrontation just yet. He knew it was infantile, but... he just wasn't ready for that just yet. Especially not from Error or his brother.

Error....

Nightmare wasn't sure he could ever forgive himself for what he did to Error. The Destroyer would almost certainly forgive HIM, yes, because that was just the wonderful person he was, but Nightmare didn't _want_ to be forgiven so easily. Who knew if he was truly cured? If he wasn't just a ticking time bomb waiting to go off? What if the cure they had created was only temporary? What then?

Nobody wanted to ask the hard questions right now. They wanted to look towards the bright future possible ahead of them. Which is good! They should be keeping their spirits up. But they were ignoring the important things that still needed to be settled.

Nightmare sighed deeply, looking up at the stars above the alley.

They were beautiful tonight.

When did the little things start to matter so much? The dark skeleton supposed that losing everything would logically make one more grateful to everything in return...

There was a crash and clatter of metal a few streets down, then various shouting and banging noises, interrupting Nightmare's train of thought.

Curiously, and somewhat against his better judgement, Nightmare slipped into the shadows, shooting over to the commotion to investigate.

The source of the noise was what seemed to be a gang of humans with bats, knocking over trash cans and bumping into the walls of the alleyways, trying to chase something.

Nightmare's single blue eye quickly caught sight of a speedy little blur fleeing from the humans. It seemed to be some sort of Monster, but Nightmare wasn't sure. It was probably sentient, however, from all the negative panic and fear he could sense coming from the thing.

One of the humans made a diving grab for the creature, and its luck finally ran out as it was forced to dodge into a dead end in the maze of alleyways. The thing froze, looking for a way out that, as far as Nightmare could tell, was nonexistent.

Another human dove for the creature, and this time it was caught, held tightly in the human's hands. It seemed to have trouble breathing.

Nightmare looked closer at the now trapped creature. It seemed to be something like a miniature version of a Sans, but with four black, feathery wings, and two spiraling horns, one of which was chipped and broken off near the skull. It was dressed in a tattered jacket and pair of sweatpants, all shrunken to be small so as to fit the tiny creature, with a hole cut into the pants so that a tiny tail with an arrowhead at the end could fit through.

"Please let me go! Let me go!"  
The creature struggled in the human's grip, speaking suddenly for the first time, startling Nightmare. _So it is sentient after all... maybe it's a bitty, and I'm in a bitty AU? I've never seen a bitty like that...._

The human tightened its grip on the bitty-like creature, making it whimper in pain. Nightmare snarled quietly in his hiding place. They were abusing that bitty.  
"Not a chance, fleabag," the human snapped in reply, squeezing even tighter. "You think you can just run away from a fight in the ring like that and get away with it?!"

Nightmare's scowl deepened. A bitty fighting ring? Those were horrible places that killed bitties, first in spirit and then physically. And if the ring fights didn't kill them, their owners would. Nightmare was usually all for negativity to make himself stronger, but any abuse was unacceptable to him. Especially after everything that had just happened a few weeks ago...

"Well?! Do you think you can just escape from me?!" The human shook the bitty up and down, hurting it further. It was so small, only the size of a Chihuahua at best, and every jostle caused a fresh burst of pain that Nightmare felt uncomfortable tasting.

Instead of fighting like Nightmare expected, the bitty slumped in broken submission in the human's grip.  
"N-no, Master...." You could barely hear the poor thing's voice, it was so weak and tired from running.

"Good," said the human, seemingly sated for now. "We're going home now, and you're not going to get any food or water for tonight. You should know better, unless you want to end up dead like your little brother you were so fond of?"

"...Yes, Master.... No.... I'll be good…." The bitty whispered brokenly, despair flowing off of them in waves. Every burst of power Nightmare was given from those negative emotions came with a bitter taste in his mouth. A strong feeling of _wrongness._

Despite his better judgement, Nightmare stepped out of the shadows to intervene, growling lowly at the bitty's captors.

The humans whirled around, all five of them, and their scowls deepened at the sight of Nightmare blocking any escape from the dead end in the alleyway.  
The human who had caught the bitty, the one who was seemingly in control, scowled at Nightmare threateningly. "What do you want?!"

The human squeezed the bitty even tighter, and something in Nightmare snapped. Shooting out a tentacle with no warning, he impaled the closest human, stabbing them through the chest with a sharpened tendril before throwing them against the wall. He hid a wince at the effort it took- that had hurt a bit. He was far from fully recovered, but these were just humans. He could take four more humans, especially these disgusting abusers.

The other humans stared at Nightmare in growing horror and shock, further fueling his powers. The Guardian of Negativity smirked slightly, watching the humans back away in fear. Good. Now he just had to get the bitty out of the crossfire so he didn't hurt it by accident.

"What I _want_ is that bitty. You're going to hand it over, human." Nightmare said, purring lowly as he fed off of their terror.

The lead human hesitated for a few seconds, but after another growl from Nightmare, he quickly threw the bitty at Nightmare, making the tarry skeleton reach out with another tentacle to catch them before the poor thing fell to the ground.

"T-there! You can have him! He's useless anyway! Let us go, or we'll kill you! We've killed plenty of your kind before!" The human spoke with a slight tremor in their voice as they tried to hide their fear, but Nightmare simply gave a low chuckle. These scum really thought they could try to bluff him?

"Not just yet," Nightmare tsked, watching the humans tense up. "I want just one more tiny thing from you."

"Which is?!" The leading human demanded, somewhat relieved that it seemed as though the tarlike skeleton wasn't going to kill them right away. "I'm not gonna pay you or anything!" Whatever this monster wanted, it had to be better than fighting them, right?

 _Wrong,_ Nightmare thought, bringing the bitty behind him in case any attacks flew his way. He let out a low rumble, dropping his voice several octaves to the tone his enemies had learned long ago to fear.

**"I want you dead."**

Before the humans could react, three tendrils had already stabbed the closest humans, slinging them aside after puncturing their Souls cleanly. No time for any shrieks of pain, simply killed in an instant.

The leader finally came to his senses, drawing a gun and shooting blindly at Nightmare. On any other Monster, it might have worked, but Nightmare's ooze simply absorbed and melted the bullets as soon as they hit his body.

Not wanting to extend this encounter any longer, Nightmare calmly walked forward, taking all the bullets without so much as blinking, holding the bitty behind him to make sure they stayed safe. The human swore obscenities, but that did nothing at all to deter Nightmare.  
One he was closer, the Guardian simply sharpened the side of a tentacle and pulled out the Soul of the last human, staring in dissaproval. Their LV was high with barely any EXP, which meant they were murderers, but mostly just horrible people 24/7.

Any thoughts of MERCY flew out of the window, and Nightmare crushed the Soul in a tendril, watching as the human collasped to the ground, spasms running through their body. Nightmare watched apathetially as the life drained from their eyes. This person deserved this.

The shivering of the bitty in Nightmare's grasp brought him back to reality, and he turned around, twisting his tendril to look at the miniature version of a Monster he had just saved on an impulse.

The bitty refused to look the Guardian in his eyes, instead curling up as best it could and putting its arms over its head and eyes.

Nightmare had heard a lot of things in his long career as misunderstood villain, but what the bitty said next completely took him by surprise.

"Please," It whispered, wings slumped down to help cover itself from Nightmare's cyan gaze. "please just kill me already."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY GUYS would you like a Discord server for my stuff? ALN, The Bloody Night Calls, ADD (A Dying Dream), and all my little oneshots? It's up to y'all!
> 
> A comment, theory, or kudos a day keeps the writers blook away! And it has been all up on me recently, haha! *pained chuckling*  
> As the vote was al for longer and less frequent chapters, they will take a bit longer to post. But you get long ones like this one, around a thousand words or more! Yay!  
> 
> 
> I have also been in primary contact with someone who recently tested positive for COVID-19. I'm not in the danger zone in age or physical health for COVID, so I should be fine even if i DO get the virus. But for now, I'm still healthy, just self qurantining and trying not to touch a bunch of my stuff. That means my computer too, so the chapters might be spaced out! Same with any replies on a Discord server. I just wanna be as safe as possible, and unfortunately, that means slowing down this stuff too.


	3. Help Him

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The poor Bitty has been broken. Nightmare needs to get him some help before it's too late....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ON TOP OF THE EARLY UPDATE--
> 
> GUESS WHO FINALLY SET UP A DISCORD????
> 
> https://discord.gg/DX7dyPb
> 
> HEAD ON OVER AND GIVE ME A SHOUT!!
> 
> I won't be on all the time, but it might be a fun place to hang out and chat! This link will never expire, so it should be fine to stay here ^^
> 
> ALSO in this bitty AU Monsters are on the Surface, so there are Humans, Monsters and Bitties. A bit confusing but I like the idea and dynamic ^^

Nightmare stared, dumbfounded, at the tiny Monster in his grasp.

...Kill it?...

He gently shook the creature, observing how it slumped exhaustedly no matter what he did.  
Sighing to himself, Nightmare inhaled deeply, letting what little healing magic he possessed at the moment flow into the bitty. 

After a moment, the four-winged creature began to stir. Probably in discomfort- Nightmare knew how cold his magic was- but more importantly, he could see from the way the bitty moved its wings that one of them was broken and twisted, and probably very painful to move.  
On a whim, his magic moved to concentrate on that area, but Nightmare was simply too tired to do much. He could align the bone and ease the pain, but with his current low reserves from his own injuries, there was simply nothing more he could do without endangering himself.

The bitty seemed to have recovered enough to look at Nightmare with a sort of resigned amusement.

"…Don't like killin' defenseless creatures, want a challenge instead? EXP that can run and make it interestin' for ya…?"

Nightmare started when the creature spoke, looking closer at it. "No, I-"

"S'okay, I get it," the bitty chuckled sadly. "Ya took care of those humans with no effort. Me runnin' wouldn't do much for ya in ways of a challenge, eh?"

"I don't intend to kill you," Nightmare said, somewhat confused. "Who heals someone just to kill them a second later?"

"Didja save me for the fightin' rings, then?" The bitty slumped again, helpless in Nightmare's gentle but firm grasp. "They took One to the rings. But poor little Two," the creature gestured at himself weakly, "Well, he's just too fragile and worthless for stuff like that.…"

"Who did this to you?"

The bitty looked up at the dark Guardian with a sort of tired curiosity. "Huh? Whad'ya mean, buddy?" 

"Who.... who hurt you? Where is your owner?" Nightmare's voice was filled with barely suppressed anger, making the creature cower back in a mixture of fear and submission.

"O-over there," the bitty stuttered, pointing shakily to the humans bleeding on the concrete near the wall that Nightmare had mutilated. "I-I'm not sure if they could s-still hear ya after what ya did to 'em, though…"

"Good." Nightmare nodded stiffly, glaring at the bloodied bodies for a bit. "Abusers like that... they didn't deserve their lives if that was what they were going to do with them."

The bitty looked silently at Nightmare, flinching and redirecting their gaze when the Guardian looked back at him. Nightmare couldn't blame it- he had just murdered its previous captors in front of them, and he was plenty intimidating under regular circumstances.  
"What's your name?" 

The bitty sighed. "It's Two."

Nightmare raised an eyebrow, or the skeletal equivalent of doing so, and the creature explained.

"I'm Male No. 2. The scientists said that's all the name I needed. A _mindless creature_ doesn't need a name, all that great stuff." The bitty sounded like he was trying to summon some spite at said scientists, but all he could manage was exhaustion and constant dull terror at his situation.

Nightmare blinked slowly, processing what the bitty- apparently Two- was implying. Was he tested on, or-?

No. Not important right now. What was important was this bitty.

"Do you have a home? Any other owners" Nightmare asked. He doubted it, but he needed to know if the bitty already had an owner.

"Nope, ya did in my owners earlier. And no home, not unless you count the cages. Home rancid home, heh," Two said quietly. "Better than the streets at least. I wouldn't last a night in my condition."

What was Nightmare thinking? This was not the plan, this was not what he needed, he had his brother and Blue to take care of now, he didn't need another person to take care of...

But it was obvious that this bitty needed _him_.

With another sigh, the dark skeleton gently extended a thumb to rub the small bitty's head, causing Two to look up at him, leaning into the touch unconsciously.

"What about me?"

Two blinked in confusion at Nightmare's cryptic question. "…What? Big guy, yer gonna haveta be more specific..."

"Would I do as a new owner? A new guardian, whatever?" Nightmare kept up his soothing rubbing motions as he spoke.

The bitty shrugged, tired. "I don't really care. Kill me or keep me, do what ya want. Just... make it quick if it's the former, will ya?"

"I'm not going to do any such thing," Nightmare replied somewhat sternly, placing the bitty in a front pocket near his chest gently. "We need to get you checked up by a proper doctor."

Two looked at Nightmare in surprise. "Buddy, aren't those expensive? Not sure that you'd wanna-"

"Money isn't an issue," Nightmare reassured Two gently. He needed to reach a safe place to get this bitty- Two-? He would have to see about names later- treated, and set that wing. "Do you know where I could find any good bitty doctors, or…?"

Two shrugged, thinking. "Alphys is a pretty famous bitty vet I guess. Her rates are pretty high though, and her relations with the Captian of the Guard are the talk of the town. They often scare away the ones who aren't serious."

Nightmare nodded, glad to have a destination. He had seen Alphys's lab earlier walking by, but it was a fair distance away...

"Hold on tight," Nighmare warned the bitty, rearing his tendrils and feeling his magic reach into the code of the AU, readying a quick teleport without the use of a portal.

"Why?" Two clung to the pocket, apprehensive. "What's going on-"

The dark Guardian let his magic loose, sinking into the corruption he had dripped onto the ground before blipping away, keeping a tight cocoon of intent around Two, making sure he would remain safe in the trip through the Void.

He emerged from the shadows less than a millisecond later, reforming with the bitty still safe in his pocket, if a bit rattled.

"Are you alright?" Nightmare looked down at the shaking creature with an edge of worry. "The Void isn't exactly pleasant."

"I- I will be in a second," the bitty gasped, clinging to the rim of the pocket for dear life. "That was... awful."

"Sorry about that," Nightmare apologized, sighing. "I just needed to get here quickly. I won't do it again if I can help it."

The dark Guardian willed his tendrils to dissappear, drawing them into his back, giving him a slightly more mortal look.

Two watched with dulled interest, craning his head back. "…What else can ya do with those…?"

"Lots of things," Nightmare said evasively. "For now, I simply want to look more normal so I don't scare anyone unnecessarily."

Two eyed the corrupted skeleton with skeptical apprehension. "…You're still plenty terrifying."

"But at least I don't look like an octopus on top of that," Nightmare pointed out, walking out of the alleyway he had warped to and making his way across the street to the gigantic hospital-like building that stated "BITTY EMERGENCY CARE" in large letters on the front.

The bitty shrunk deeper into Nightmare's pocket as they approached, people staring at the odd and intimidating pair. Nightmare was used to such treatment, and he walked with an air of importance and danger that subtly drove other passerby to give him a wide berth as he opened the door to the hospital.

He drew eyes from humans and Monsters alike as he walked up to the front desk, tapping his side in mild annoyance as the clerk, a Sans dressed in nurse garb, ignored him, eyes glued to a monitor flashing values and prices and information registry.

Well, thank the stars he had been smart enough to go to a Universe without knowledge of the other AUs out there. He was just another Monster here. Uncanny resemblence to this Sans and terrifying appearance aside, of course.

Not willing to wait any longer, Nightmare tapped on the desk, two sharp yet unaggressive raps on the blue metal.

The Sans whirled around, relaxed and perhaps a bit annoyed at being interrupted, turning to face the newcomers.

"Hey. Welcome to the Bitty hospital. If you have any injured.. or..."

The Sans copy's face turned whiter, if that were even possible, as he took in the large skeleton that looked like a demonic... _him_ … standing in front of the counter.

Nightmare took charge of the situation, clearing his throat.  
"Hey. I have an injured Bitty I saved from... various circumstances a few minutes ago..."

He glanced down at the Sans's nametag discreetly.

"…Viol. He needs treatment immediately. Money is not an issue. How would I go about making that happen?" The corrupted skeleton gestured to Two, curled up in his pocket. The tiny creature was terrified, and each drop of negativity left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Viol seemed to remember that he owned a tongue, and he quickly coughed, pressing a small button on a phone on the counter. "O-of course, one moment please."

He picked up the grey phone, speaking into it urgently for a few moments before replacing it with a hand on his temple, carefully putting the phone back on the charger.

"Uh. The stretcher will be here in a few seconds, Mr..?"

"Night." Nightmare used his alias that worked for him in several AUs- Nightmare was a clue for the Star Sanses. You would think that 'Nightmare' and 'Night' would soon be connected as suspicious, but it had raised no heads as of yet.

Viol looked even more unnerved at the Guardian's blunt response. "Ah- Monsters aren't allowed in the operating rooms, Mr. Night, so... we have a waiting room...?"

Nightmare nodded slowly, eyes drawn to a small stretcher-like contraption pulled/carried by a Bunny Monster, obviously made for bitties.

He pulled Two carefully out of his pocket, placing their shaking form on the stretcher as the bunny stopped in front of him. He winced at the sheer amount of negativity Two was emitting.

"I'll be waiting, Two. Just be patient."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, kudos, theories, LEMME KNOW!!
> 
> I have no idea what Bitty AUs are like and so i made my own ;-;
> 
> Guess what Viol's full name is~! Winner gets a prize!*
> 
> *prize not guaranteed


	4. Hospital Shenanigans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, a lot has happened....
> 
> What is going on with Nightmare playing the waiting game while the operations are in process? What are Noot's plans for Two in the future? WHAT IS VIOL'S FULL NAME???
> 
> Find out today!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I probably need to sketch out Two's design because he looks absolutely SICK in my mind and I will leave it up to you which definition of 'sick' you prefer to use :3

'Night' seeemed content to simply stay put in the waiting area, much to Viol's relief. One hour, two hours passed, and the terrifying skeleton version of... him...? Seemed content to simply sit on one of the couches, charging his phone and flicking his thumb across the screen occasionally. Ever so often, he would swipe his finger across the screen, and take a glance up at the surrounding area, eye narrowed.

Viol thought he seemed suspicious, but people of all kinds came for help from the hospital, and it was their job to heal. He could get details later.

But his biting curiousity wouldn't let him focus, so he printed out a few forms and legal restriction papers that the skeleton would need to approve later anyway, convincing himself that he was being helpful.  
Taking a deep breath, Viol stepped out of his chair, grabbed the papers, and walked over to the couch where the terrifying Monster was sitting.

The other immediately became alert, piercing Viol with a single blue eye as he lowered his phone.

"…Yes?"

Viol shuddered at his voice. It was deep and smooth, but part of it carried a dangerous edge that Viol was sure could cut through steel. He shrunk back a bit under the other's searching gaze., but tried to brush it off in the casual, don't-mind-me attitude he had long ago perfected.

"Hey, buddy, there's some forms we need you to fill out for the bitty. Name, owner, legal docs, all that," he said calmly, masking his nervousness.

The tarlike skeleton narrowed his eye.  
"…Bitty hospitals in this area don't need that information until afterwards, and it's passed down from the main doctor. What's going on here?"

Rats, he was caught. Had the former been looking up bitty hospitals and their protocol just now? He wouldn't put anything past the intimidating Monster... mmmmaybe he could bluff his way out…?

No, he didn't want to risk making the other angry. Might as well tell the truth.

"Actually, bud, I was curious about ya. You don't look like the type to own a bitty, and that little guy seemed real beat up. So either something happened behind the scenes that I don't know about, or..." he left his sentence hanging. If the other really had been abusing the bitty, then he needed to call the authorities as soon as possible.

The skeleton frowned, staring at Viol, expression still carefully guarded. "Is this necessary information for you to know?"

"If ya wanna adopt the poor little dude later, then yes," Viol replied, trying to seem more confident than he felt. "People around here won't let you adopt some bitty unless you can prove you have the skills and the right to do so. And how it looks right now, unless we have testimony, it seemed as though the little dude has been abused. Not by you, I hope...?"

The skeleton flinched, anger in his eyes, before shaking his head, seemingly dispersing the extra emotion.  
"No.... no. I found the abusers, though. They were using him for something... not a fighting ring, but they said something about that as well." His eye flashed with a sharp huff. "They can't hurt him anymore."

"...Mind if I sit down.... Mister....?" Viol was very intimidated at the moment, but it didn't seem like the other Monster meant him any direct harm as long as he seemed non-threatening. And it was certainly a relief to know that he hadn't hurt the injured bitty. At least, he claimed he hadn't, but Viol prided himself on his ability to sense a lie, and that statement had seemed loke the full truth.

"I do use male pronouns, but you can just call me Night, as I stated previously," the skeleton said, gesturing to a nearby seat. "And why not, I'm not using all of the chairs."

"My name's Ravioli," Viol said, cracking a small grin as 'Night' let out an amused chuckle. "But everyone calls me Viol. They assume it's short for Violet, and I don't really see the point in correcting them, do you?"

"What they don't know won't keep them up laughing late at night," the black skeleton said, seeming more relaxed. "What are those papers you got there that you 'needed to give me'?"

"Just some insurance payment stuff, information about the patient, et cetera, et cetera." Viol slipped the stack of papers across the table to the other skeleton before reiterating his earlier statement as a question. "Are you planning on adopting the little guy?"

Night sighed. "What would happen to him if I didn't?"

"Well, he would be taken to a center," Viol said bluntly. "Put up for adoption until someone takes him home. Enough food and water, a little cramped though."

"…Do they provide therapy?" the tarlike skeleton questioned, glancing over the papers with a cautious eye. "Security?"

"Not much therapy," Viol admitted sheepishly. "We'd need a lot bigger budget to afford that. Security's okay, it keeps the bitties inside after all. Depends on the shelter."

"Unacceptable," Night said shortly. "I'll adopt him myself."

Viol raised an eyebrow. "Bitty-keeping aint easy, pal. Or cheap, for that matter. You sure?"

"I brought up four- no, five 'problem children' as my sons," Night responded, pulling a pen out of his jacket pocket to begin marking off boxes and writing in the margins given on the paperwork. "And as I stated earlier, money is no object to me."

Viol smiled incredulously. Bitty-raising was an expensive endeavor, and to talk about adopting one right after paying for surgery… "What, you a millionaire or something?"

"Or something," the other replied evasively. "Do they have any shops nearby that would sell the necessary items to make a bitty feel comfortable at a new home…?"

"Bitty.co, Bitties and Barnum, and BittyCentric would all be good places to start," Viol shrugged, crossing his legs. "If you really need something afterwards, a lot of them have online same day delivery, too. What are you looking for in particular?"

"What would you suggest?" Night put his pen to the side, taking a break from the paperwork. 

"…Uh... if your bitty's got wings, a taller bitty house or a large perch might work. Clothes, supplies, all that junk should be purchased with the bitty coming along so you can have their input." Viol tried to think back to his basic days of training, when he first wanted to adopt his own bitty, who was currently at home with his brother. "Your family should be told in advance so they know what to expect, too, if they want to help out and buy things as well..."

"Ah."  
Night did something with his phone, sliding his thumbs across the screen several times, typing quickly before turning it off and slipping it back in his pocket with a wince.

"…Reluctant family members?" Viol stared sympathetically.

"Something like that," Night sighed, rubbing his nasal ridge with a thumb and forefinger. "Something like that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone guessed names along the lines of Violent or Violence or Violate for the Sans's name.... all the amazing names I could have used... but instead....
> 
> *sweats in ravioli*
> 
> Come say hi to me at the discord! Art, comments, roleplay, and just good old talking and getting to know people! Please tell me if the link is expired because god help me i set them to infinite and never expire but sometimesthe mouse does what it wants ;-;
> 
> https://discord.gg/PazqDeH
> 
> Maybe if enough people vote on there and in the comments I'll finlly finish that Snickers™ crackfic idek about that one its random as heck but hOW WOULD ONE MAKE A SERIOUS FIC ABOUT SNICKERS MAY I ASK
> 
> I want raviolli now
> 
> have a very nice day :3 Drink lots of water, hydrate those chapped lips you might have (or you might be an eldritch monster that does not posses lips, in which case i apologize profusely for my assumption)!


	5. Second Chances

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes you can get a second chance in life....
> 
> even when you don't deserve it.
> 
> And Killer has a whole lot of doubt but you know that's usual at this point

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WELL THE WRITER'S BLOCK IS GONE NOW
> 
> I still hATE the intro to this chapter but ehhh if I tried to fix every little thing it would be another few weeks till I got anything out ^^'
> 
> HAPPY LATE HALOWEEN

In the Void, a small object floated alone in the endless space.

A tiny heart, upside-down, crystal clear with a tinge of red to the insides.

A Soul.

The Soul of one who had been tossed away into the Void's deadly expanse, to the demise they would have deserved.

But something stopped the never-ceasing blackness from destroying the helpless thing.

A red sheen glowed in a circle outside of the Soul, forming a protective sphere around it, keeping the darkness at bay.

Every so often, the Soul would cry out piteously.

_I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I'll do better next time, I promise!_

And once, a whisper of a response answered it.

_Soon. Soon. Not now._

The Soul pulsed violently.

_When?_

Again the whisper came.

_Soon. Seeds have been planted. They will sprout, and you will be free. Be quiet._

The Soul fell silent once more, waiting in the endless Void.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Killer paced the floor of his room anxiously, worry filling his expression.

Nightmare was missing.

Nightmare was MISSING. Gone without a trace, no note to say where he was going or when he would get back. Nobody even knew when he had first left! 

Killer had gone up to bring Nightmare his dinner that day, and he had gotten no answer when he knocked. Wairly, he slowly opened the door just a crack....

to find the bed empty, and the Guardian of Negativity gone.

The entire Doodle Sphere base had been quickly searched- while somewhat cluttered, it didn't have any mazelike dungeons that could serve as a formidiable hiding place- but Nightmare was nowhere to be found.

Error was currently running a database search of the AUs, trying to get a lock on Nightmare's magical signature, but it was slow going. If Nightmare had been captured, then there was even a chance that his Soul could be too weak to register on the searches.

But the most likely option? Nightmare had left of his own accord.

Killer felt…. somewhat hurt by that revelation. The Doodle Sphere was warded to intruders, so even if someone had tried to break in and kidnap Nightmare, the security measures would have been activated. But why would Nightmare just... up and leave?

Even if he had told Killer and the others… there really wasn't much they could have done. Of course they would have set a watch and refused to let Nightmare leave in his vulnerable state, but.... he was Nightmare. In the blink of an eye, he could turn into a shadow and vanish at a moment's notice, and nothing the others could do would be able to stop him if he really wanted to leave.

But why would he want to leave…? Especially off-AU? Certainly, even injured the Guardian could rend most normal AU residents to shreds… but why take the risk of running into a potentially powerful enemy?

Worry and guilt knawed at Kiler's insides as he paced. What if this was a sign that Nightmare was reverting back to his... crazed state? Had he left to try and stop himself from hurting his family again? Was the antidote incomplete?

If so, we might as well be dead, the fears within the depths of Killer's mind whispered. Even with Ink's help, and an antidote, we barely managed to win the battle, and Dream was taken completely out of commission. And Ink was killed. We don't even have the Creator on our side anymore. Would there be any hope left…?

He grimaced. This was mostly his fault... why hadn't he been paying closer attention…? Maybe if he had made his rounds more often, checked up on Nightmare sooner... but he hadn't gone to his father's room since he delivered lunch, and there was no telling how much time had elapsed since Nightmare had disappeared.

There was a knock on the door, starling him out of his thoughts, and Killer turned around, begrudingly halting his pacing to flop on his bed. "…Come in."

Dust peeked in after opening the door a crack. "…Killer, that you?"

"Nah, it's Asgore," Killer quipped from his bedcovers. "Of course it's me, you goof. Who else would it be."

"You never know." Dust walked in, closing the door behind him and walking over to Killer's bed. "Mind if I take a seat?"

Kiler shrugged, or tried to while lying down. "...Don't see why not."

"Still no sign of Nightmare," Dust reported grimly. "Everyone has been searching, but... it's going to be hard."

"This is my fault," Killer sighed, pulling his arms over his face. "God, it's just been one thing after another…"

Dust frowned. "This wasn't your fault, Killer. None of this whole mess was."

"Whose fault was it this time, then?" Killer clenched his hand into a fist, closing his eyes. "Ink is dead. Who do we blame this time?"

"If Nightmare left on his own, do you think you really could have stopped him?" Dust asked seriously. "Dad is.... Dad, yeah, but he's also incredibly powerful. If he really wanted to go, none of us could have stopped him. Except maybe Error, but he's hurt."

Killer sighed. "…I mean… I just… I feel like I should have done something more. I'm in charge of everyone while he's out of commission, but I can't do what Night did."

He sat up slowly. "I can't even do half of what Dad could. I'm not as fast or strong as he is, and there's just so much work every day... I may be a leader, but what we need is a father. And that's not me. I keep falling short."

"Nightmare didn't sleep half the time, he stayed up all night working," Dust pointed out. "Nobody expects you to be just like him, because you _can't_ be like him. He isn't mortal. But you're doing your best, and that's all anyone could ever ask of you."

Killer frowned, but didn't reply, exhaling slowly through his nose.

"Killer, moping isn't going to do any good," Dust reasoned with him. "Come on. You know what Nightmare would tell you if he saw you like this?"

"What."Killer lowered his arm off of his face so he could stare Dust down, expression deadpan.

To his surprise, Dust extended his own arm and used it to gently whack Killer on the side of his head.

"Stop pouting about what you can't do and start working on doing what you can, Killer."

The unexpected action made Killer freeze up for a moment, flinching back for a second before huffing in defeat.  
"Alright, alright. You win, Dust. I'll stop."

"You'd better!" Dust's smile widened, relief in his eyelights. "What's next on the agenda, Boss?"

"Don't call me Boss, Dust." Killer pulled out his phone from his pockets, feeling it rumble. He had set it to silent mode so that he could brood in peace, but apparently a notification had still gotten through. "…Ugh, if it's another spam caller I swear…"

He opened the notification, which surprisingly sent him to the family Group Chat.

Dust's phone vibrated as well, and he too opened up the Group Chat. "Wonder who that is."

Killer expected a message from Error or maybe Horror, but his eyes widenedas he read the sender, and then the texts below.

**Nightmare: Got a bitty, waiting @ hospital atm, it got hurt by some creeps ealier. im fine, will be back by tomorrow afternoon i think**

**Cross: OMG DAD WAIT WHERE R U**

**Error: MARE GET BACK HERE RIGHT NOW WE'RE ALL WORRIED**

**Nightmare: srry cant. theyre gonna send the bitty to a center if i dont fill out the forms. im not hurt ill be fine**

**Horror: AT LEAST KEEP YOUR PHONE ON SO IF SMTH HAPPEN WE CAN HELP**

**Horror: PLZ**

**< Nightmare has logged off! >**

**Error: NO**

Killer stared at his phone in disbelief.

"…Well," Dust said weakly, "At least we know he's okay…?"

"A BITTY??" Killer finally found his voice, barely refraining from slamming his phone against the wall.

_"We've been worried SICK and he's just? out there? Somewhere?? Adopting?? A?? BITTY?!?"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Killer.
> 
> Come scream at me on my Discord! Currently there is an ask forum for Error and Nightmare. My readers have currently taken to tormenting Nightmare with cat toys ^^ I have never been prouder.
> 
> https://Discord.gg/PazqDeH
> 
> Drink lots of water and stay safe! Wear a mask when you go into a public building ^^


	6. Dark Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nightmare's not okay. He's been pretending, and he's been doing a bang-up job of it, because _he's Nightmare_ , Master of Shutting People Out to Try And Protect Them And Just Making Things Worse Unintentionally.
> 
> ~~That's it, that's the fic~~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANOTHER CHAPTER AND ITS NOT EVEN BEEN A MONTH YET WHAT A SURPRISE OWO-  
>  _I don't know where the inspiration and motivation is coming from and its almost scaring me haha_
> 
> Happy Thanksgiving for those of you who celebrate the holiday! Turkey~ Or, in my case, I prefer honey ham ^^
> 
> Make sure to drink some water if you haven't recently! And eat something, make sure to sleep... take care of yourselves guys!
> 
>  **TW for some suicidal thoughts!!!** Pay attention to those tags, please!! I try to update them when I need to, but if I'm forgetting something to tag, please let me know!

Nightmare sighed, leaning back in his seat.

Viol had invited him to a meal at the hospital café on him so that they could talk further on his break. Nightmare hadn't really felt like eating much recently, and this was no different, but he ordered a chocolate milkshake and was currently engaged in conversation about adoption papers.

Viol had made it seem like they were going to purposely make it as difficult as possible for anyone they didn't think _looked_ like someone who should adopt a bitty to become a guardian, so he was really going to have to familiarize himself with all the legalities. Thankfully, most of them seemed familiar to him.

"How do you _know_ all of this stuff?" Viol stared at Nightmare's edits and notes on the spare adoption papers. "Are you a lawyer or something? All I asked you to do was point out the obvious problems!"

"Eh, I deal with a lot of legal stuff at work," Nightmare replied, not _technically_ lying, but definitely not telling the whole truth. That wouldn't have gone down well with anyone.

"Well, you seem to have a lot of this down," Viol said slowly, perusing the notes. "...Why did you put down two million as 'money you are willing to spend on commodities'?" 

Nightmare stared at Viol with a somewhat deadpan expression.

"...Right, sorry, that was a bit rude," Viol replied sheepishly. "It all looks pretty good? You technically are already the legal guardian if you rescued him from..."

He pulled out another set of papers from the folder he had brought to the café.  
"'A group of people in a bitty smuggling ring, now deceased'. Wait, how did you know they were dead?" Viol raised an eyebrow.

Nightmare, now with a rather exasperated expression, took another sip of his drink. "You are quite nosy."

"Well, you're very mysterious!" Viol retorted. "You just show up here with a bitty, and you look like... you look like me, but dropped in a tar pit! And with only one eye. How do you even see with only one eye? Doesn't it mess up your depth perception or something?"

"I'm a skeleton, and I _have_ two eyes," Nightmare sighed. "The other one is just covered up by the... 'tar'. It doesn't glow blue, but that doesn't mean it's not there. I have bad depth perception, but that doesn't mean I can't _see_. I'm used to it."

"How does that even work?" Viol seemed to be restraining himself from trying to touch the ooze covering Nightmare's bones. "Why don't you leave black tar everywhere you touch?"

"It's a part of me," Nightmare replied in a tone of voice that said he wouldn't talk more on the subject. "of course I don't leave it everywhere."

"...Right," Viol said slowly. He had a feeling that wasn't nearly half of it, but he wasn't going to pursue the matter any further.

After a few seconds of awkward pause, Viol closed his folder again.  
"Well, aside from your rather unusual appearance, even for a Monster... everything should be fine. People are going to complain, sure, but there's nothing they can legally do. If you want, I can ask for your bitty's status over the front desk?"

"That would be very welcome, Viol," Nightmare replied, averting his eyes. "...I've been rather worried."

Viol gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Night. Your bitty is in good hands."

He rose from the table and half jogged, half walked back to the front desk, slipping into his swivel chair and picking up a phone by his desk, twirling a finger around the cord.

Nightmare slipped his hand into his pocket, pulling out his phone and staring at the black screen hesitatingly.

He had time now. Plenty of it, and nothing else to distract him. He should text his family the details. Where he was, who he was with, why he had done this...

He lowered the phone to the table.

...Why had he done that?

The Guardian of Negativity, the King of Darkness... those names weren't given to him because he was _merciful_. Aside from his gang, if he was seen by someone, there was a good chance he would dust them himself. He had killed plenty of people in the past, and he had let plenty of others die as direct or indirect results of his actions. Why did he act differently this time?

He _knew_ there would be consequences. Why had he saved this bitty?

Nightmare sighed, letting go of his phone to rub his temple with both hands tiredly.

Deep down, all of this might just be a desperate distraction from what was to come.

Sooner or later, he was going to have to face ~~what he had done~~ what Ink had done to him. Error was still injured, Dream was almost on his deathbed until recently... Dust had a spiderwebbing crack on the side of his head, and plenty of the others had bruises, cuts, and scars that were from _him_.

Nightmare knew what the others were going to say, of course. It wasn't his fault, they didn't hate him, they weren't scared of him. That they could all start over again.

He knew that wasn't true. At least, the last part wasn't.

There was no way to tell if the antidote had been completely effective. What if it wore off? What if it wasn't permanent, and he started slowly reverting back to the monster he was? What if he killed one of them next time?

The fact that there was even room for _what if's_ on this subject was dangerous.

In Nightmare's opinion, the safest thing to do would be... to get rid of him. To place him somewhere he could never escape, and monitor him constantly. But that was impossible.  
Aside from the Void, there was really no place that would hold him forever, especially if he intended to leave. With his ability to manipulate code and the proper intent, even the strongest firewalls would crumble after ages of work. And with the murderous intent he remembered from his shadowed days... it would certainly be more than enough.

The next best thing to do would be to kill him.

Internally, he could hear a shriek of phantom protests from his gang, and he chuckled darkly. They would refuse, of course. He simply meant too much to them. They would quite literally put the entire Multiverse on the line for a chance to have their father figure stay with them. Error.... Error didn't want to give up what they had.

Nightmare didn't either, but he would rather break his Soul than hurt Error again, ever. He didn't even have his ring anymore.  
It must've rolled away at some point during his madness... or maybe he threw it away on purpose. He shook his head to clear it of the dark clouds and headache that always approached whenever he tried to clearly recall those times.

The one of the only two things stopping him from jumping into the Void to secure his family's safety, to be quite frank, was Dream. He could jump, sure, but what would the others think? There would be no way to disguise his action- Dream would instantly die the moment he did, as a result of their joined Souls. Nightmare... wasn't going to murder his brother, as well. That was not something he was willing to do, no matter what.

The other thing...

Nightmare was _scared._

He was scared of himself, of the fact that he might feasibly snap at any time, that _he_ was the main threat to the Multiverse now, that he had hurt his family and he might do it again...

He was scared of his death.

It had never really been a possibility he considered, with his immortality accounted for. He was basically a God- aside from the Void, there was nothing that could kill him, as Ink had proved. Although he could get ill, and his mental state could be affected, dying was not an eventuality for him as it was for most other Monsters and beings.

And now, he was considering it as a possible solution to keep his family safe.

And it scared him more than anything he'd ever felt, more than when he had first eaten the apples, more than when he had realized that he _couldn't stop hurting the people in his AU_ , more than being all alone with nobody else to help him, nobody to save him-

Nightmare inhaled shakily before exhaling, eyelight wavering.

This was not the place to have a panic attack, he ordered himself. Calm down. Breathe.

He placed his hands on the table again, brushing against his phone. Slowly, he picked it up and unlocked it, opening the camera app.

He took a quick selfie of himself, making sure that there weren't any landmarks in any windows that could be used to show where he was. After a second of perusing, Nightmare sent the picture to the group chat with a message.

**Nightmare: im still okay in case you were wondering- will be home soon hopefully. stop trying to find where i am error ik youre still searching, im fine**

**Nightmare: [photo included, click link to view]**

He quickly escaped the app, not reading any of the messages that were sure to pop up. He turned airplane mode back on and slipped his phone back in his pocket, turning it off.

...Maybe therapy was necessary after all this was said and done? He could go somewhere later on a surface AU... maybe bargain with Error to get off his back about some of this. As long as nobody knew who he really was. Maybe that didn't really matter for a therapist, though? It's not like they could contact Ink, after all. ~~_You really made sure that wouldn't be a problem, huh?_~~

Goodness, Nightmare did _not_ like how snappish his voice sounded internally. Stop whining.  
_~~Oh, stop whining yourself. Then both the voices will stop, right? That's how this is supposed to work.~~_

He groaned quietly, rubbing his temples. This was exactly the opposite of productive.

Nightmare didn't even register the fact that Viol had walked back over until the other slid his chair back so he could sit down, making a squeaking sound that made Nightmare's head snap up in an involuntary motion, zeroing in on the source and stiffening slightly until he realized who it was.

Viol looked knowingly at the corrupted skeleton sitting across from him, rubbing his skull.

"Ah. You got a headache?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~~You gonna drink the rest of that milkshake, Nightmare?~~ but if i try to fix it it'll never get dooooone~
> 
> The Discord I set up is thriving on madness and Cinnabon fire, I kid you not. We've got Q&A sections for three characters so far! I might set one up for myself as well, who knows heheh-  
> HERE'S THE DISCORD LINK GUYS it should work for infinity but KNOWING MY LUCK IT MIGHT NOT, tell me if it's expired owo  
> https://discord.gg/tRuNarKTwk
> 
> Go scream at Error and Nightmare and a special character Bookwyrm and I stirred up together!
> 
> But go get some water first. (*•̀ᴗ•́*)و ̑̑


	7. Okay But Have You Ever Tried Therapeutic Shopping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> If Nightmare's going to adopt Two, he needs to get some supplies! There isn't exactly a whole bunch of bitty-friendly stuff at the base.
> 
> That means _a shopping spree!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I hate shopping unless it's for art supplies. Like, I _loathe_ it. _So much._
> 
> Time to subject my characters to similar situations, yay!

Nightmare wondered briefly what had become of his life.

He was currently riding on a bus, Viol seated next to him. Teleportation might be faster, but it wasn't a viable option for someplace he hadn't been before.

Nightmare's instincts, even muddled as they were, screamed at him. How unsafe was this? How many people could try to kill him, right now? How many people could try to kill Viol? Who could be holding a knife, disguising magical attacks and the intent to harm? If the bus crashed, how quickly could he escape? How quickly could he teleport out? Could he grab Viol as well, or would it be too late by then?  
His paranoia wasn't nearly this bad most of the time, but he couldn't shake it right now. Annoying.

Nightmare felt something poke at his shoulder and gave something akin to a full-body shudder, stiffening up and flicking his gaze to Viol, who seemed somewhat guilty as he realized that he had startled the other with his touching.

Viol smiled slightly. "I'm sorry about that- you seem stressed out. Don't like the bus?"

"Never have," Nightmare said quietly, eyelight flicking from one possible threat to another without ceasing. "Too many variables."

"Well, we're getting off on the next stop," Viol replied, tone borderline soothing. "I need to stop by my place to let my brother know I got off my shift safely. After that, it's just a short walk to the bitty mall."

"You don't have a phone?" Nightmare raised an eyebrow.

"I... left it at home, today," the other confessed, diverting his gaze somewhat sheepishly. "I do that a lot, I'm a bit forgetful. Fett hates it."

Nightmare turned slightly to fully face Viol, accepting the distraction. "Who's Fett?"

"My brother!" Viol seemed to brighten up even more, reaching into his pocket. "I should have a picture on my- oh. Nevermind."

Nightmare chuckled. "You really do forget things easily. How do you work as a hospital receptionist?"

"Hey, I don't forget things all the time," Viol retorted, snorting in fake offense. "I use all my brain storage at my job, so I don't have much left over after work."

Nightmare waited, giving the other a deadpan expression.

"...And I use a lot of sticky notes," Viol admitted, rubbing the back of his neck in slight embarrassment. "It's difficult to keep track of a million different things, okay?"

"Believe me, I get it," Nightmare said, remembering all the forgeries he would work on daily. "It gets difficult remembering which font is which, and I refuse to use a computer."

Viol stared at him. "What?"

"Nothing, nothing important." The tarlike skeleton quickly glanced around for a distraction from the current topic, and found one with perfect timing. "Isn't this our stop?"

"Oh, it is!" Viol shot up and out of his seat, and Nightmare followed him down the bus to the doors, albeit at a slower pace.

_He's hopeless. But it's... a nice kind of hopeless. He wouldn't last half a second in a battle, but he doesn't need to fight._

Viol tripped on the last step, swearing as he cartwheeled his arms around in fast circles to regain his balance. Nightmare watched, amused, as he hopped off of the bus in one easy motion, not even bothering with the steps.

He snickered softly as the other gave him an exasperated half-glare. "What kind of psychopath doesn't even walk down the stairs?"

"What kind of peasant can't use stairs without almost implanting his face on the concrete?" Nightmare retorted easily, stepping onto the sidewalk and out of the street as the bus drove away.

"The coolest kind," Viol said loftily as he regained his balance. "Come on, my house is this way."

Nightmare followed the other skeleton Monster as he half-walked, half-jogged down the sidewalk, past house after house. Nightmare kept up easily with what was, to him, a leisurely stride.

Viol stopped in front of a modest one-story home with a neat little garden in the front, pulling his keys out from his pocket and unlocking the door, calling out to his brother.  
"FETT, I'M HOME!" The smaller skeleton turned to face Nightmare curiously. "You coming?"

"...If you're sure," Nightmare responded slowly, stepping in the entryway after Viol, careful to wipe his feet on the welcome mat so he didn't track extra dirt into the home.

"I'm sure," Viol chuckled, closing the door behind them. "Fett, you home?"

"YES, BROTHER, I'M SIMPLY DOING CHORES IN THE KITCHEN," A loud voice, easily recognizable as a Papyrus, called out from the kitchen, just out of sight from where Nightmare was standing in the entryway. "DO I HEAR ANOTHER VOICE WITH YOU?"

"Yeah! I met someone at work, and he needs a bit of help, so I volunteered." Viol pulled off his shoes and left them by the doorway, walking to the kitchen across the carpeted living room. Nightmare slowly followed, electing to keep his slippers on so as not to track extra corruption on the floor. "Fett, meet Night!"

'Fett' was a Papyrus, alright. The skeleton was rather tall, like usual for Multiversal copies of his kind, but to Nightmare's surprise, a large scar covered one side of his face, the crack running through the top of his skull and his lower jaw, with a monocle over the affected eye socket.

"OH MY!" Fett's eyes lit up as he stared at Nightmare. "HELLO, NIGHT! YOU LOOK AN AWFUL LOT LIKE MY BROTHER. ARE YOU RELATED?"

"No, we aren't," Viol spoke up, saving Nightmare from the indignity of scrambling for an excuse. "Night is a similar type of Monster, though."

"AH, I SEE." Fett walked out of the kitchen and extended a hand for Nightmare to shake. "NICE TO MEET ONE OF MY BROTHER'S FRIENDS! I AM FETTUCCINE, BUT PLEASE, CALL ME FETT."

"My name's Night." Nightmare raised his hand to meet Fett's. "Viol's going to be taking me shopping for bitty supplies."

"OH! YOU ARE A NEW OWNER, THEN?" Fett seemed pleased. "FEEL FREE TO COME BACK AND TELL US HOW IT TURNED OUT FOR YOU!"

Nightmare turned to Viol. "Are you gonna grab your phone sowe can get goin? What time does the store close?"

"Relaaaaax, Night," Viol sighed, reaching over a nearby counter to grab what Nighmare could only assume to be his phone. "They close at ten PM, we're fine."

"YOU WILL NOT BE OUT LATE LIKE THE LAST TIME," Fett said, narrowing his yes. "STAY SAFE, VIOL. NIGHT, PLEASE KEEP HIM OUT OF TROUBLE! THE IMMEDIATE NEIGHBORS MIGHT BE PLEASANT, BUT... I DO NOT LIKE THE NEIGHBORHOOD ON A WHOLE."

Viol saluted his brother. "Gotcha, Fett. Be safe, be home before dark."  
He nudged Night towards the door. "Seeya later!"

-+-+-+-+-

Viol guided them through a maze of city blocks, eventually stopping in front of a rather large store complex. "Here we are!"

Nightmare frowned. "…Is it in a mall…?"

"A pretty small one," Viol pointed. " Not a lot of people come at this time, either. We might even have the place to ourselves!"

Nightmare sighed quietly, following Viol into the mall through the sliding doors. "What's it look like?"

"Biggest store in here, you can't miss it," Viol assured him. "And the owner is the nicest gal you'll ever see! Her name's Luna, she runs the store with a small staff and her bitty. I worked a few shifts there before I moved to the hospital!"

Nightmare grunted noncommittedly, looking at the various shops. A watch store... a stuffed animal store, packed to the brim... the obligatory pretzel shop that was in every store… actually, he might want to stop for a pretzel after all this drama was over. With cheese sauce.... not a half-bad idea, honestly.

Viol pointed to a large pair of doors for a shop Nightmare didn't recognize. "There it is! Luna's Bitty Supply."

As they walked inside, the first thing Nightmare noticed was a security guard standing near the inside of the doors. They were a rather small axolotl Monster, the tips of the gills on top of their head would barely brush Nightmare's chin. Still, Nightmare noted things that might make the unimposing guard dangerous. Their magic seemed strong, and Nightmare recognized the shape of a tranq-gun holster and a tazer attatched to their belt out of the corner of his eye.

"Why do they need guards?" Nightmare whispered in Viol's ear canal. "Doen't the mall provide them too?"

"Yeah, but Luna wants someone on-hand who specializes in Monster-related incidents," Viol responded lightly. "That's Aqua, she's cool."

Nightmare grabbed a basket from the cart return, following Viol to the bitty-clothing aisle.

"What kind of clothes do you think that Two would like?" Nightmare frowned at the rows and rows of animal onesies. 

"Let's see," Viol said, scratching the side of his skull. "He has wings, right? So we need some with velcro or button-zipper kinda backs or he might have to jam his wings into the shirts."

"OUR REMOVABLE-BACK CLOTHING IS TO YOUR RIGHT A BIT!"

Nightmare jolted, head swiveling to find the source of the loud voice.

Sitting on one of the shelves on the aisle was a rather small skeleton bitty with a blue jacket and bandanna, star-shaped eyelights sparkling as they smiled at Nightmare and Viol. "HEYA!"

"Oh boy." Viol smiled tiredly. "Night, this is Warrior. He's Luna's Baby Blue bitty, he helps customers find what they need. He can be a little… excitable."

"THE OPEN BACKED SHIRTS ARE RIGHT THERE," Warrior pointed to a collection of various tiny tops. "AND NEXT TO THEM ARE THE BOTTOMS WITH TAIL-OPENINGS! BUT IF YOUR BITTY HAS MULTIPLE TAILS, YOU MIGHT HAVE TO TAILOR SOMETHING SPECIALLY MADE..."

Nightmare stared, deadpan, at Warrior's cheerful expression as the bitty continued to rattle off shopping advice.

_Ah, what the heck,_ he thought grimly. _Why not let the bitty help out. Today couldn't get any worse or weirder, anyways._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh no it could NEVER get any weirder or worse EVER I would NEVER do that to Nightmare EVER
> 
> I actually hosted a contest/raffle on my Discord recently for some cameos in the work! There were three winners total, see if you can spot who/where their cameos were! You'll see more of them as the story progresses ;3
> 
> I might do this sometime in the future as well- you wouldn't want to miss out, would you?  
> *drops a fixed link to the Discord*
> 
> https://discord.gg/jaYTJDb
> 
> We'd love to have you!
> 
> Currently we are discussing the credibility of Flesh Doughnuts.
> 
> also LAST UPDATE OF THE YEAR!! Happy New Year! I hope 2020 wasn't as bad as it could have been for you and your friends/family ^^'  
> Here's to 2021, and the death of 2020! :D


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